In their own words

October 20, 2002|The Morning Call

"What upsets me the most about the priests' sex crisis is: That pedophile priests exist, that bishops did unwisely cover up and transfer them, hoping to solve the problem, but most of all the media held high carnival in a frenzy of Catholic-bashing. Society grew tired of it, and I will never forget about it."

-- A priest in his mid-40s from the Philadelphia Archdiocese

"In most cases, the media have said many inaccurate things about what pedophilia is and have not been clear about how rare pedophilia is. They have blamed celibacy for the crisis instead of the failure by some priests to live a celibate life. This is like blaming marriage vows for the actions of adulterers."

-- A priest in his late 40s from the Allentown Diocese

"In many instances, the bishop was following the recommendations of doctors and lawyers. The sex thing was considered a moral weakness."

-- A priest in his late 40s from the Scranton Diocese

"What the offending priests have done is wrong, but so many priests serve faithfully. Write about them!"

-- A priest in his late 40s from the Allentown Diocese

"Since the bishops have disciplined priests for sexual abuse and misconduct, they need to effectively, clearly, publicly discipline themselves for cover-up."

-- A priest in his mid-50s from the Scranton Diocese

"While the abuse of minors is tragic, I am greatly annoyed by the media frenzy. This is not a problem particular to Catholic clergy. It is a problem that knows no religious or ethnic lines."

-- A priest in his 30s from the Philadelphia Archdiocese

"What bothers me the most about the recent allegations of sexual abuse is the mishandling or negligence of bishops leading to greater suffering of the victims and their families."

-- A priest in his 40s from the Scranton Diocese

"Since the 1980s, we (have) known that a pedophile will most likely do wrong again. Now that an overwhelming number of bishops voted for the charter, if any bishop fails to protect against abuse of children, he should be prosecuted according to civil law and also be removed as an ordinary (bishop) by the Holy Father.

-- A priest in his 70s from the Philadelphia Archdiocese

"In no other crime is employment, church or faith considered a link to abuse. Why is it considered a link in these cases? The public school (sexual abuse) scandal is far greater."

-- A priest in his 40s from the Philadelphia Archdiocese

"What bothers me most about the recent allegations of sex abuse among priests is that I watch how the press will report a positive event in church life and add on a negative item even if they have to dig up an event from 20 years ago. It is a shame that I have little confidence in what I read and see."

-- A priest in his 60s from the Philadelphia Archdiocese

"In spite of some human pitfalls by priests and laity in our church, I think that we are doing a good job. Overall, the clergy and laity are to be applauded."

-- A priest in his 60s from the Philadelphia Archdiocese

"The basic teachings of our faith have not changed. The church is made up of ordinary human beings capable of making mistakes and sinning. The church, however, will survive the scandal and hopefully will be all the better."